Bulk carrier and conveyor assembly



April 25, 1967 J. 5. GARDNER BULK CARRIER AND CONVEYOR ASSEMBLY Dn E 1 W "m w 7 s v s 2 E @E W M M com owm 0mm, ow \I/ O0 vwm oi vwc ll 4674' 0? E? 0% v ,X\ @Q m9 4 @Q 7 @Q 0: 0mm mv 0mm vmm Sm om Wm owl 9 r l 9w r Filed March 1, 1965 J. S. GARDNER BULK CARRIER AND CONVEYOR ASSEMBLY FIG. 2

- sh ets-sheet 2 INVENTOR. JIMMIE S GARDNER United States Patent BULK CARRIER AND CONVEYOR ASSEMBLY Jimmie S. Gardner, Box 341, Washington, N.C. 27889 Filed Mar. 1, 1965, Ser. No. 437,005 2 Claims. (Cl. 21483.2)

This invention relates to bulk carrying vehicles such as railway flat cars and has for an object to make it practical for these to have a removable bin carrying frame disposed above a flat bed with a conveyor extending horizontally along the bed beneath the bin means and in which the conveyor extends under certain transverse braces of the bin means, especially important to a removable bin frame for strength, and between the transverse braces and the flat bed, whereby the conveyor belt can be lower than it would be if it extended above the transverse braces, thus conserving an important amount of vertical height, maintaining a lower center of gravity, and providing greater stability and lesser likelihood of capsizing.

Other and further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description, drawings and claims, the scope of the invention not being limited to the drawings themselves as the drawings are only for the purpose of illustrating a way in which the principles of this invention can be applied.

Other embodiments of the invention utilizing the same or equivalent principles may be used and structural changes may be made as desired by those skilled in the art without departing from the present invention and the purview of the appended claims.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of the 'bulk carrier and conveyor assembly of this invention shown in the form in which a portion of the assembly is a railroad flat car, certain parts of the assembly being broken away for showing the positions of other parts thereunder.

FIGURE 2 is an end view of the assembly of FIG- URE 1 as seen from either one of the ends, an end frame member being removed completely for illustrating parts therebehind.

The bulk carrier and conveyor assembly or bulk receiver of this invention is generally indicated at which comprises a railroad flat car or other conveyance having a fiat upper 'bed 24. Bin means 30 and 32 are supported in interconnected and disconnectable frames 40 and 42 a substantial spacing above the bed 24. The frames 40 and 42 are removable from the flat car 20 and are removably attached thereto by a releasable securing assembly 60, preferably having hooks 70 extending over the side frame members 74. The hooks 70 can be caused to raise from the frame members 74 and to be turned outwardly away therefrom so that the frames 40 and 42 can be removed from the flat car.

The releasable securing assemblies 60 can each have a lock box covering a toggle assembly with the hooks 70 protruding from the lock box so that vandals cannot release the toggle releasable hold-down assembly parts that are disposed in the lock box.

The frames 40 and 42 have undersurface extremities lying in a single line, the said undersurface extremities being the undersides A of lower side frame members 74 and can also include lower end frame members 75, and these lie in a single plane so that the weight of the hightonnage bulk cargo is carried at the sides of the box car.

Transverse braces 76 connect the lower right and left side frame members 74.

The bins 30 and 32 are removable, when empty, from their frames 40 and 42 by suitable means attached to eyes 84 fixed to the bins.

A belt conveyor having a frame 112 is disposed beneath the bins 30' and 32 and extends longitudinally of the rail car. The conveyor 110 is reversible being driven by a reversible driving means 114, whereby the conveyor 110 unloads at terminal ends at both the front and rear of the flat car 20. The transverse braces 76 are preferably I-beams resting on the tops of horizontal frames 77 of side frame members 74, whereby the braces 76 are not in load-bearing contact with the flat bed 24 of the flat car 20.

Each bin 30 has a side wall extending vertically on each side and also an inclined bottom wall 134 on each side. The bottom walls 134 are supported by inwardly inclined flanges 136 of bin support side frame members 140, which latter extend horizontally.

Inclined frame members extend inwardly from and are attached to the members 140. The frame members 150 are fixed to a gate valve frame 160, which latter lies generally in a horizontal plane and has in it a plurality of gate valves 164 which can be moved from positions closing openings at the lower ends of spout portions of each respective bin to optional outer positions shown in dotted lines at 166 in order to open the valve openings 168 leading from the center of the bin in order to allow cargo to fiow therethrough along the arrow to the top of the conveyor. The gate valves can be manually quickly adjusted by reaching handles 18 8 on the outer edges thereof.

The conveyor has a frame 200 which has side frame members 112 attached to the transverse braces 76 whereby the conveyor frame and the bin frame are permanently attached so that the conveyor is removable from the flat car or truck simultaneously with the bin frames 40* or 42, which latter are removably attached together by suitable means such as bolts extending through abutting frame members of the respective frames 40 and 42 on each side of the frames.

The lower conveyor belt section 266 travels under the transverse braces 76 so as to keep the vertical height of the entire assembly to a minimum.

The end 270 of the conveyor extends down the outer side 272 of an end roller 280* of the conveyor and identical construction is present at the opposite end of the conveyor, for identical ease of unloading at the opposite end of the conveyor, also.

The end roller 280 is down under the top of the end lower frame member 284 of the bin frame 40 and under the top of the next inner brace 76 so that the lower section 260 of the conveyor can extend under the frame members 76 as close as possible to the fiat bed 24.

The conveyor side members 112 are directly connected at 300 to the sliding gate valve frame 160 as is important to prevent the conveyor unit from being detached while the assembly is on a rail siding where thieves might have time to operate. The conveyor frame is, therefore, permanently connected to the bin frames by welding at 300 or by one-piece integral construction. The construction could be such that there is no access to the conveyor, except perhaps at the end, and at the ends suitable lockable doors could prevent the access to the conveyor completely. A top hatch is shown at 460 with cover 402 and beneath it the top sections of the sides 410 incline downwardly and outwardly at a considerable inclination with respect to the horizontal, as shown, so that no space that would otherwise be empty would exist as waste space in dotted areas 402 that exist on prior art bins which have flat top walls along the sides of their hatches.

Upper extensions 500' of the frames 40' and 42 can support catwalk areas 520 alongside the hatch and the hatch can have suitable catwalk means 530 on its upper side, if desired.

The reversible driving means 114 can be a reversible electric motor connected to the drive roller 280 by means of a shaft 286.

Each of the bins 3t} and 32 of FIGURE 1 has a pair of spouts 550, each having a forward wall 552 and a rearward wall 554 which incline downwardly and rearwardly and downwardly and forwardly, respectively, to funnel cargo toward a respective one of the gate valves 164.

As thus described, this invention is believed to have fulfilled the objectives above set forth in providing a less expensive and more eflicient assembly in the form of a new combination of structures achieving economy of bulk cargo transport and versatility of selectable unloading points, more so than has been heretofore available.

From the foregoing description, it is thought to be obvious that a bulk carrier and conveyor assembly constructed in accordance with my invention is particularly well adapted for use, by reason of the convenience and facility with which it may be assembled and operated, and it will also be obvious that my invention can be changed and modified without departing from the principles and spirit thereof, and for this reason, I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself to the precise arrangement and formation of the several parts herein shown in carrying out my invention in practice, except as claimed.

I claim:

1. A fiat bed conveyance having a fiat upper bed, bin means disposed above said bed, bin frames supporting said bin means and having lower frame members engaging said bed, means for removably attaching said frame means to said conveyance, a conveyor extending longitudinally of said conveyance and extending beneath said bin means, gate valve means disposed between said bin means and said conveyor, said bin means having openings disposed above said conveyor for the discharge of mate- 3 rial, said discharge openings being far lesser in total combined area as seen in top plan view than the area of the horizontal cross section of said bin means at a point on said bin means of maximum horizontal cross section, whereby the majority of the weight of cargo in said bins is supported by lower portions of said bins means rather than by said gate valves, each gate valve having a sliding gate which extends horizontally and which is horizontally slidable to and from positions extending across the underside of said respective discharge opening, and in which said frame means is supported on means at the edges of said flat bed of said conveyance and in which an area beneath a lower portion of said horizontally extending conveyor is substantially free of portions of said frame, the lower section of said conveyor being disposed closely below said frame means adjacent said flat bed for the reduction of height and the maintenance of a low center of gravity for stability.

2. The combination of claim 1 in which said conveyor is provided with drive means, said drive means being reversible so that said conveyor is adapted to deliver material either at the forward or the rearward end of said conveyance.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 797,482 8/1905 Whitney 214-832 1,165,736 12/1915 White 214-83.18 2,668,629 2/1954 Dahlman 214-832 3,240,366 3/1966, Sahr 21483.2 X

FOREIGN PATENTS 815,162 11/1951 Germany.

5 GERALD M. FORLENZA, Primary Examiner.

ALBERT J. MAKAY, Examiner. 

1. A FLAT BED CONVEYANCE HAVING A FLAT UPPER BED, BIN MEANS DISPOSED ABOVE SAID BED, BIN FRAMES SUPPORTING SAID BIN MEANS AND HAVING LOWER FRAME MEMBERS ENGAGING SAID BED, MEANS FOR REMOVABLY ATTACHING SAID FRAME MEANS TO SAID CONVEYANCE, A CONVEYOR EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY OF SAID CONVEYANCE AND EXTENDING BENEATH SAID BIN MEANS, GATE VALVE MEANS DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID BIN MEANS AND SAID CONVEYOR, SAID BIN MEANS HAVING OPENINGS DISPOSED ABOVE SAID CONVEYOR FOR THE DISCHARGE OF MATERIAL, SAID DISCHARGE OPENINGS BEING FAR LESSER IN TOTAL COMBINED AREA AS SEEN IN TOP PLAN VIEW THAN THE AREA OF THE HORIZONTAL CROSS SECTION OF SAID BIN MEANS AT A POINT ON SAID BIN MEANS OF MAXIMUM HORIZONTAL CROSS SECTION, WHEREBY THE MAJORITY OF THE WEIGHT OF CARGO IN SAID BINS IS SUPPORTED BY LOWER PORTIONS OF SAID BINS MEANS RATHER THAN BY SAID GATE VALVES, EACH GATE VALVE HAVING A SLIDING GATE WHICH EXTENDS HORIZONTALLY AND WHICH IS HORIZONTALLY SLIDABLE TO AND FROM POSITIONS EXTENDING ACROSS THE UNDERSIDE OF SAID RESPECTIVE DISCHARGE OPENING, AND IN WHICH SAID FRAME MEANS IS SUPPORTED ON MEANS AT THE EDGES OF SAID FLAT BED OF SAID CONVEYANCE AND IN WHICH AN AREA BENEATH A LOWER PORTION OF SAID HORIZONTALLY EXTENDING CONVEYOR IS SUBSTANTIALLY FREE OF PORTIONS OF SAID FRAME, THE LOWER SECTION OF SAID CONVEYOR BEING DISPOSED CLOSELY BELOW SAID FRAME MEANS ADJACENT SAID FLAT BED FOR THE REDUCTION OF HEIGHT AND THE MAINTENANCE OF A LOW CENTER OF GRAVITY FOR STABILITY. 